Rags to Rosettes for Lisa

An enterprising Rotherham woman has jumped back into the saddle and taken the reins of her career with her own horse riding business following help from a local project.

Former health and safety manager Lisa Morgan (31) from Maltby dreamed of starting up her own equestrian company but was unsure how to get into business before contacting the Rotherham Enterprise Project.

The mother of two said: “Riding horses has always been my passion and working long hours in the health and safety department for Ikea in Rotherham meant spending time with my two young sons, who are aged five and nine, really difficult.

“I’m a single parent and have really fought to get where I am. I just felt ready for a complete life change. So when my mum saw an advert about the Rotherham Enterprise Project offering business advice in a local newspaper, I got in contact and Rags to Rosettes has been up and running since April. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done!”

The Rotherham Enterprise Project, which is part financed by The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), helped Lisa secure a 500 grant and provided essential business knowledge about national insurance and tax needed to become self employed.

As a fully qualified horse riding coach, Lisa is currently working towards more advanced teaching accreditation. She is a groom at a dressage competition yard, competes in affiliated eventing and runs themed pony parties for children’s birthdays.

She added: “I ride and train horses and offer popular parties with my ponies – from cowboys and cowgirls to knights in armour and pink parties. The grant money helped me to sort advertising for Rags to Rosettes including stickers for my work car - and I would have had no idea about my entitlement if it hadn’t been for the project.

“It was a hard decision risking a well paid job to set up on my own, but I can now be flexible around my children and they love it and always want to ride the ponies. It’s a dream lifestyle for me and something I’ve always wanted to do.

Lisa hopes to go into horse breeding next year and plans to keep in touch with the project. She said: “I’m working to build my business and grow to offer more and more. It’s great that everyone from the project has been so supportive and I know will help me along the way”.

Rob Moorhouse, a business coach from the Rotherham Investment and Development Office – an arm of Rotherham Enterprise said: “Giving up a secure job to pursue a career in something you love is not always an easy choice, but Lisa has shown that for her it was a risk worth taking.

“Now her business is reaping the rewards of success and is full of original ideas. We wish her all the best in business and will continue to offer her valuable support.”